The Cairo giants were battered at Ismaili in Sunday's match after producing a below-par display.

Ahli, who have many players unavailable through injury including Sayed Moawad and Hossam Ashour, suffered a lot of weaknesses.

Their rearguard was stuttering while the presence of holding midfielders Moataz Eno and Hossam Ghaly was hardly felt, allowing Ismaili to tighten their grip on the game.

Frontmen Geddo and Francis Doe barely showed goal menace. Mohamed Ghaddar didn't add any firepower when he replaced the latter striker too.

However, Maihoub played down his team's defeat and lackluster performance, saying Ahli will redeem themselves in no time.

"I hope no one make a big deal out of this," he stated in the post-match news conference. "This is Ahli's first league loss this season and any team could lose.

"Only teams in contention for the title are able to regain form quickly, and that's what we will do."

On the match, Maihoub said: "Ismaili were better indeed; they fully concentrated on the game and deserved to win.

"We conceded the three goals because of individual mistakes but I don't want to hold anyone responsible for the defeat. We win as a team and lose as a team."

Keep Backing the Team

Maihoub also called on Ahli's fans to keep supporting the Egyptian champions.

Few minutes before the final whistle a host of Ahli spectators jeered head coach Hossam Al-Badri, calling for his resignation.

"I know that the fans' frustration is justifiable but we need to keep backing the team," he said. "The game at Ismaili is over now and we need to pay attention to what's coming."

Al-Badri has been under fire for quite a while because of the Egyptian champions' lackluster performances and unsatisfying results on all fronts.

The six-time African champions, who have one more game in hand, are still in second place with 18 points while Ismaili moved up to seventh spot on 16.